


people say to fall in love with your best friend, but that's tough when you have more than one

by SerpentineJ



Category: Gintama
Genre: M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-18
Updated: 2018-07-18
Packaged: 2019-06-12 05:47:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,808
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15333150
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SerpentineJ/pseuds/SerpentineJ
Summary: Takasugi presses his lips against the side of Katsura's neck."You can't hide it from me," he murmurs, hand still pressing against the side of Katsura's abdomen, voice low and dangerous. "How you feel for him.""Can't I?" Katsura says, quietly, moving in so close he's almost kissing Takasugi's ear. "Isn't it because you feel the same way? For Gintoki."





	people say to fall in love with your best friend, but that's tough when you have more than one

**Author's Note:**

> NOTE: starts... after the gengai arc , where takasugi makes his first appearance, and ends with benizakura!
> 
> tbh my true love is joi ot4 and i hate leaving sakamoto out but he doesnt fit as much in w this theme ;-; so! sakamoto also loves them and they love him

"Don't you have anything better to do?" Katsura says, grumbles, as Takasugi smirks at him. "Weren't you fighting with Gintoki?"

"Gintoki can wait a moment," Takasugi says, pressing himself closer to Katsura. Katsura's hat and metal staff fall to the side with a jingle. He wraps his arm around Katsura's waist and noses where Katsura's ear meets his neck. 

Katsura sighs.

"Do we have to do this here?" He says. His back is flat against the rough wall of the alley between what he recognizes as one of Gintoki's regular pachinko places and a tiny cafe. It's hot, since it's summer, but the alley is shaded enough that looking in from the bright sunlight at the entrance of the alley, one would barely be able to see the form of the two men.

Takasugi smiles.

"Would you rather let your men see?" He says, free hand slipping around Katsura's shoulder to pin him against the wall. "Or mine? You've always been so concerned about appearing a leader, Zura."

"It's not Zura," Katsura says, annoyed, but he breaks off in surprise when Takasugi presses his lips to the side of his neck. "Ah-"

Takasugi breathes slowly against Katsura's skin. His touch, which had been pushy at first, when he had found Katsura and near-manhandled him into this alley, is now more of an embrace than a force actually keeping him pinned to the wall. Katsura slowly, hesitantly brings his own arm up to touch his fingers to Takasugi's side. Takasugi almost shudders at the touch.

"How long has it been since we've seen each other?" Takasugi murmurs, breath warm on Katsura's neck.

Katsura makes a vague noise.

"A long time," he sighs.

"Did you miss me?" Takasugi says.

"In your dreams," Katsura mutters. Takasugi chuckles and kisses his jawline. Katsura tries to put the unsettled feelings in the pit of his stomach to rest. Takasugi's presence is partly so familiar it makes him relax unconsciously, and partly so alien he can't reconcile this eyepatched, grinning demon with the upstart boy who bucked all of his family's expectations and ran away with a travelling teacher - his old friend. The boy who had given him courage to follow. Katsura has always been weak for his friends.

Takasugi must have been smoking. His mouth tastes vaguely of herbal smoke. His lips are as firm and insistent as Katsura remembers, and despite himself, he surrenders to this feeling of nostalgia and lost love -

For some reason, Gintok's image flashes in his mind, and he gasps and pulls back.

Takasugi narrows his eyes at him.

Katsura licks his lips. They feel the tiniest bit swollen. Takasugi looks like he knows what he's thinking.

"You made contact with him a while ago, didn't you," Takasugi says. He doesn't need to specify who he's talking about. Katsura doesn't look away.

"I did," he says. Takasugi makes a low noise. He presses his body against Katsura's lean form. Katsura exhales. A low, warm feeling spreads through his body where his limbs touch Takasugi's.

"Gintoki." He murmurs. "That bastard."

He slips one hand insistently under the purple outer garment of Katsura's outfit. 

"Takasugi-" Katsura breathes.

"Would you rather it was him here?" Takasugi says - there's still an edge of that smile on his face, but it's more dangerous now - "Touching you. Instead of me."

Katsura glares at him.

"I won't dignify that foolish question with an answer," he says by way of avoiding the question. Takasugi makes an irritated noise and bites at his neck. Katsura exhales harshly and sinks further against the wall, opening himself up more to Takasugi's roaming hands.

Takasugi kisses the corner of his mouth, surprisingly gently. Katsura strangles the whining noise that is trying to slip out of his throat. He tightens his grip on the sides of Takasugi's loose butterfly-patterned yukata. It drags ever so slightly off the cuff of his shoulder. His skin is pale like Katsura's, but more sallow than delicate - Katsura remembers rubbing salve on mottled blue-purple bruises littered across the same swath of skin, and he drops his forehead to rest against the corner of where Takasugi's thin collarbone connects with the muscle of his shoulder, feeling Takasugi's familiar breathing underneath him. Katsura's weight is completely supported by the wall behind him and Takasugi propping him up from the front.

Takasugi presses his lips against the side of Katsura's neck.

"You can't hide it from me," he murmurs, hand still pressing against the side of Katsura's abdomen, voice low and dangerous. "How you feel for him."

"Can't I?" Katsura says, lowly, moving in so close he's almost kissing Takasugi's ear. "Isn't it because you feel the same way? For Gintoki."

Takasugi growls and pushes away. Katsura, breathing labored, stares at him with wide eyes. They're both flushed from the summer afternoon heat. There's a flush high on Takasugi's sallow cheeks. The white cloth of his eyepatch looks red in the shadow and the setting sun.

"Don't try and deny it, Takasugi," Katsura says. Instead of pushing Takasugi away, he wraps his fingers around the other man's thin wrist. Takasugi's arm jerks, as though he's not used to being touched so gently. Katsura understands. They grew up in a war. Further than that, this is not the Takasugi Katsura had once known. Katsura's old friend would never have stood for senseless violence. Shoyo-sensei had taught them better than that, Katsura thinks, and then he thinks again, because Takasugi must be fighting to protect their teacher's spirit in his own way, misguided as it might be.  
As his friend, it's his duty to stop him, he knows, but those thoughts seem to melt away when Takasugi presses him against the wall again.

"Do you know what I feel?" Takasugi says in Katsura's ear. "Can you hear the beast howling inside me, Zura?"

Katsura pulls away and gives him a look.

Takasugi grins and leans in to kiss him again.

\--

"Zura?" A familiar voice calls out from behind him, and Zura turns. This is the worst possible time. Normally he's happy to run into Gintoki on the street (not that he would ever admit to that) but right now his heart is racing and he's pulling the collar of his monk's robes up his neck to hide purpling marks.

"Gintoki," he says. "Fancy seeing you here."

"What are you doing?" Gintoki says, raising one eyebrow. "It's pretty late for a terrorist to be out on the streets. The Shinsengumi patrol this neighborhood at night, you know."

"I could ask the same of you," Katsura replies, tugging at his collar self-consciously. Gintoki narrows his eyes.

"Are you..." He says. "Alright? Zura? You look kind of flushed."

Katsura glares at him. He's very aware of the pink tint that has yet to leave his face. Gintoki walks towards him, which doesn't help his racing heart rate - he suddenly remembers long, warm summer nights spent crammed into the same tent, sweating on top of their sheets, unable to sleep because of the stench of the battlefield - 

He's been remembering a lot, recently. It must be Takasugi's reappearance. He's seen glimpses of the other man from time to time, since their occupations overlap, but Takasugi has been getting into even more dangerous waters than Katsura deems it safe to tread. Takasugi has always been a reckless leader.

Gintoki, on the other hand -

Gintoki has never been the leader. He's only the soul of their team. When he'd taken Shoyo-sensei's head, it hadn't only been Shoyo that had died. Without Shoyo, or Sakamoto who had taken part of his role as mediator, to hold them together, seeing Gintoki's spirit shatter had broken them apart.

Gintoki frowns.

"You're kind of warm," he says, pressing the back of one hand to Katsura's forehead. "I thought you didn't get sick."

Katsura huffs.

"I'm not sick," he says.

"Hey, don't breathe near me," Gintoki says, "I don't want to catch... your..."

His eyes trail down to Katsura's collar. Despite his best efforts, the robe has slipped off his collar. Gintoki's eyes widen.

"Zura-" He says. There's a note of genuine worry in his voice, and suddenly Katsura feels uncomfortably guilty, though there's no reason for him to. Gintoki pushes away the fold of his robe. 

Katsura pushes him away. He sees Gintoki's expression darken.

"You smell like smoke," Gintoki mutters, moving even closer. "Takasugi. That bastard..."

"He's leaving," Katsura says. "Takasugi."

"And he did this?" Gintoki says lowly. There's a strange expression on his face. His expression is twisted. He's not glaring at Katsura, exactly, but his eyes are dark.

Katsura frowns at him.

"Gintoki," he says, irritated. "First of all, calm down. Secondly, I'm not some messenger pigeon to be passed between you and Takasugi in this stupid spat."

"It's not stupid," Gintoki mutters. "And that's not - that's not what it's about."

His fingers haven't let up from the side of Katsura's neck. He presses lightly against the darkening bruise. Teeth marks are clearly visible. The more Gintoki looks at it, the more frustrated he seems to become. 

Katsura lets out a tiny noise. Gintoki's head whips up. Katsura swallows in embarrassment. His throat moves against Gintoki's fingers. 

"Zura -" Gintoki starts to say.

"We're in public," Katsura says, helplessly, voice rough. His breathing has a harsh edge. "I-"

Gintoki blinks, then makes a stupid, strangled noise, drags Katsura into the nearest alley - another alley, Katsura groans to himself, but he doesn't say it, because Gintoki is suddenly in his space. His hands press against Katsura's shoulders, moving like he can't stop himself.

"What did -" Gintoki says, then swallows. "What did that bastard do? Tell me."

"It's none of your business -" Katsura starts to protest, but Gintoki drops his face to Katsura's shoulder.

"Please," he says, roughly. "Tell me, Zura..."

Katsura makes a high, helpless noise.

"He -" He starts to say, but the embarrassment gets the better of him and he squirms slightly. "Ah - he... against the wall, like this..."

Gintoki growls at hearing his similarity to Takasugi. Katsura lets his head fall back against the wall. This exposes the pink-purple marks left behind by Takasugi's teeth more clearly, and Gintoki glares, pushing Katsura's robe further off his shoulder to see how far Takasugi had gotten.

"How much did he..." Gintoki says lowly.

Katsura's face flushes, and he closes his eyes. He feels Gintoki's mouth press under his ear on the other side of his neck.

"I can't be between you and Takasugi forever, you know," Katsura says, quietly. Gintoki kisses his jawline gently. 

"It's not -" Gintoki gets out before groaning and pressing his face against Katsura's neck. "Damnit, Zura, you're the most blockheaded samurai this side of the atmosphere."

Katsura makes an offended noise.

"No, don't take it like that," Gintoki mutters. "I mean, you're..."

He kisses Katsura's neck again, a press of lips against skin, and Katsura looks down at him.

"Takasugi has always been your rival," Katsura murmurs. "I understand, and I care for him too, as far gone as he is, but that doesn't mean I like getting dragged into -"

Gintoki grabs his face in his hands. Katsura looks at him in surprise. Gintoki leans in, and Katsura doesn't resist when he kisses him, because he wants this as much as he's wanted anything with Takasugi, albeit in a different way. He presses back. Gintoki's hand trails carefully down his side.

\--

"Imagine my surprise," Katsura says, standing in the entrance to his room, arms crossed, "when my one of my lieutenants told me Takasugi Shinsuke was waiting for me."

Takasugi smiles lazily at him.

"Is it that strange?" He says. "A visit from an old friend who happens to be in town?"

"I thought you were leaving Edo again," he says. "Aren't the Shogun's men looking for you?"

Takasugi takes a pull from his pipe. Katsura wishes he wouldn't smoke inside. He steps inside and closes the sliding door behind him. 

"The Kiheitai is gaining the support of some powerful players in Edo's political landscape," Takasugi murmurs, standing and moving towards Katsura, who tracks him with his eyes. "How is your faction doing?"

Katsura doesn't stiffen as Takasugi slides one thin-knuckled hand around his waist. 

"Our ranks are growing steadily," Katsura says, quietly. "But I can't say I agree with the things your group has been doing."

Takasugi's other hand comes around Katsura's neck. He doesn't seem to have trouble initiating contact, but jerks away if Katsura presses his fingers to his side. Katsura sighs. 

"I miss my friend," he murmurs, barely audible even in the silence of the room. "And I am not entirely sure what you've become in his stead, Takasugi."

Takasugi grins at him. It's a sardonic smile, lacking humor, that drips down his face like black tar. Takasugi leans in to kiss him, teeth grazing over Katsura's bottom lip, and Katsura makes a slight noise in response. Takasugi slides a hand through Katsura's long, black hair, strands silky and deceivingly delicate between his fingers, then pushes Katsura down until they're both sitting on the tatami. He slides over Katsura's lap. Katsura, as the taller of the two, leans down slightly to kiss him back.

"And you are entertaining the beast in your quarters," Takasugi says, pulling away, breathless, pale cheeks flush under the bandage that covers one of his eyes. He smiles. "What does that make you, Zura?"

"It's not Zura," Katsura says on instinct, "it's Katsura."

"Zu-ra," Takasugi murmurs, drawing it out just to irritate him, pressing Katsura fully down against the tatami. Katsura's long hair splays over the flooring. 

His bony fingers find the collar of Katsura's robe. They slide it slowly off his shoulder, with the indulgence of unwrapping an expensive sweet.

Sweets make him think of Gintoki. Katsura puts that thought away for the moment, but Takasugi looks up at him with an indescribable look on his face - he looks gleeful and despairing all in one.  
"Did Gintoki leave these?" He says lowly, tracing pink marks with his fingertips. "Did you go to him after I finished with you?"

Katsura scowls at him.

"I happened to encounter -" He starts, but trails off with a sharp exhale as Takasugi presses his fingers to one of Gintoki's marks. Takasugi lowers his head and presses his lips gently, gently to each one, as though he can leave the kisses on Gintoki's lips instead of Katsura's skin if he tries hard enough. Katsura feels an ache in his chest. Takasugi slides his tongue against one particularly red spot. Katsura shudders under him.

\--

Katsuta has been having far too many encounters with old friends, he tells himself, but he still watches on the streets for a silver head of hair.

\--

After that, Takasugi doesn't seek him out again, until his henchman tries to take Katsura out, nearly making off with more than just his hair. Katsura wonders if Takasugi had instructed him to. He wouldn't put it past him, but he doesn't believe it, either. 

\--

On a spaceship in the sky, Takasugi unsheathes his blade on Nizo the Butcher, his own man, aiming straight for the throat with a wild glare. Nizo only makes it out alive by the skin of his teeth and the mercy of the blade Benizakura. Takasugi looks down at him with wide, deriding eyes. The taste of Katsura's skin lingers on his lips. The only reason he sheaths his blade again is Nizo's usefulness as a tool.

\--

("Zura would never lose to a small-fry like you," Gintoki growls, before being sliced and diced by Benizakura, when Nizo smirks with that rat face and presss Katsura's long hair to his slimy-looking face. A well of fire boils up in Gintoki's stomach. His blade is broken by Benizakura. Blood blossoms around him, and pain explodes in his abdomen, and he thinks a thousand things at once, but there's an underlying buzz to everything he does - Zura, Zura, Zura.)

\--

When Katsura reveals himself again on Takasugi's ship, hair shorn and eyebrows set in a fierce frown, Takasugi stares, and smiles, and the taste of blood dances across his tongue. Katsura glares at him. Benizakura is destroyed. Katsura and Gintoki are disgustingly in-sync, guarding each-other back-to-back. They point their blades at him in unison, and escape in unison. Takasugi's fingers have grown accustomed to the feel silky black hair and pale skin.

\--

"Was it always meant to end like this?" Takasugi murmurs to himself, staring out at a black sea of stars, pipe in hand. "Shoyo-sensei's legacy, destroying itself."

\--

"Was it always meant to end like this?" Katsura says, sounding troubled. "Starting in the same place, but looking different directions. Is there no possibility of peace in your mind, Takasugi?"

\--

"Was it always meant to end like this?" Gintoki sighs, an edge to his voice, scratching the back of his fuzzy head. "A bunch of irritating guys, making a mess of everything."

**Author's Note:**

> NOTE: im gomen i havent published fic in 3 months im rusty..... can u tell katsura is my favorite ;-;
> 
> twitter: serpentinej  
> tumblr: leofemt
> 
> and check out my currently publishing webnovel on tapas ! free to read: https://tapas.io/episode/1091905


End file.
